Category: Speeches

  • Henry Bellingham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Henry Bellingham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Henry Bellingham on 2016-04-25.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people have been prosecuted for tax evasion during the last 10 years; and what revenue has been recovered as a result of those prosecutions.

    Mr David Gauke

    HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) holds a central record of the number of individuals subject to criminal investigation for tax evasion, together with subsequent prosecutions covering the period from 2011/12 to 2014/15. HMRC does not hold a central record of the number of prosecutions and convictions broken down in this way for earlier years.

    The total number of criminal prosecutions of individuals for tax evasion during the period 2011/12 to 2014/15 was 2404. ‘Revenue Loss Prevented’ is the HMRC management information measure recorded in such cases and the total amount of Revenue Loss Prevented from 2011/12 to 2014/15 was £ 5,070,538,527.

  • Nigel Dodds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Nigel Dodds – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Dodds on 2016-06-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will estimate the average reduction in electricity bills in Great Britain for households in receipt of the Warm Home Discount Scheme.

    Andrea Leadsom

    In 2014/15 over 2.1m households received £140 off their electricity bills as a result of the Warm Home Discount.

    Under the Industry Initiatives element of the scheme nearly 28,000 households received an average of £548 debt assistance with their energy bills in 2014/15.

  • Callum McCaig – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Callum McCaig – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Callum McCaig on 2016-09-05.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what the level of (a) imports and (b) exports between the UK and Norway by sector was in each of the last five years.

    Mark Garnier

    Data on UK trade in goods with Norway in each of the last five years are only available by product, not sector. These figures are given in the attached table, sourced from Her Majesty Revenue and Customs’ Overseas Trade Statistics database.

    Data on UK trade in services with Norway by sector are not available.

  • Rupa Huq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    Rupa Huq – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Rupa Huq on 2016-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department plans to retain access to the Erasmus Plus programme after the UK leaves the EU.

    Joseph Johnson

    The referendum result has no immediate effect on students abroad under the Erasmus scheme or applying for 2016/17. Payments will be made in the usual way. Access to the programme after we leave the EU is a matter for the forthcoming negotiations. Consideration of other options will depend on the outcome of these negotiations.

  • Lord Roberts of Llandudno – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Lord Roberts of Llandudno – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Roberts of Llandudno on 2015-11-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 24 September (HL2300), why empty dwellings in London are not being filled in order to tackle the housing shortage.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    My answer of 24 September showed a trend of decreasing empty dwellings in London; from 42,600 in 2004 to 20,795 in 2014. Local authorities across the country have powers and strong incentives to tackle empty homes. Through the New Homes Bonus they can earn the same financial reward for bringing an empty home back into use as building a new one. Councils may also charge up to 150% council tax for homes empty for over two years.

    My Department will continue to encourage London councils to use these empty dwellings for housing.

  • Craig Whittaker – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    Craig Whittaker – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Communities and Local Government

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Craig Whittaker on 2015-11-30.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what guidance his Department issues to local authorities to help them reduce the levels of sickness absence among employees.

    Mr Marcus Jones

    The Department does not issue guidance to local authorities on managing sickness absence levels. Local authorities are independent employers and free to manage their workforces. However, the Government has recently announced that it intends to review sickness absence in public sector workforces. The gap in sickness absence levels between the public and private sectors is reported to have narrowed over the past 20 years but levels still remain higher in the public sector. The Government intends to consult on possible reforms and will consider legislation where necessary to reduce the impact of sickness absence on public service delivery.

  • Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Grahame Morris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Grahame Morris on 2016-01-12.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the availability of access to fertility treatments in the NHS.

    Jane Ellison

    The level of provision of infertility treatment, as for all health services they commission, is decided by local clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and will take into account the needs of the population overall. The CCG’s decisions are underpinned by clinical insight and knowledge of local healthcare needs. As such, provision of services will vary in response to local needs.

    NHS England expects that all those involved in commissioning infertility treatment services to be fully aware of the importance of having regard to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence fertility guidelines.

    On 14 December 2015 I met with stakeholders, together with colleagues from NHS England and Monitor,to discuss the provision of in vitro fertilisation. The Department, along with NHS England and Monitor, will be giving further consideration to the scope for improving the commissioning of these services.

  • Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    Douglas Chapman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Chapman on 2016-02-01.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 27 January 2016 to Question 23339, how many former employees of his Department applied to serve in foreign militaries under the Business Appointments process in each of the last five years.

    Mark Lancaster

    Fewer than five former employees of the Ministry of Defence applied to serve in foreign militaries between 1 April 2011 and 2 February 2016. Due to the low numbers, the breakdown by year has not been provided.

  • Chris Heaton-Harris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Chris Heaton-Harris – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Heaton-Harris on 2016-02-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what notification he has received on whether there are (a) constitutional requirements and (b) potential legal proceedings in other EU member states related to the Decision of the Heads of State or Government, meeting within the European Council, on 18 and 19 February 2016.

    Mr David Lidington

    It is for the relevant national authorities in other Member States to determine their constitutional requirements and potential legal proceedings.

    The Decision of the Heads of State or Government, meeting within the European Council, on 18 and 19 February 2016 was agreed to by all Member States and is now a legally binding document that has been registered with the United Nations as an international treaty.

  • Roger Mullin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    Roger Mullin – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Mullin on 2016-03-24.

    To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on the productivity of small and medium-sized businesses of the planned withdrawal of HM Revenue and Customs’ evaluation check services.

    Mr David Gauke

    No impact on UK productivity is anticipated. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has not withdrawn valuation services that are most relevant to small and medium sized enterprises including Enterprise Management Incentives (EMI), Company Share Option Plans (CSOP), Save As You Earn share option schemes (SAYE), Share Incentive Plans (SIP) and Employee Shareholder Status (ESS).

    HMRC has, however, announced a review of the valuation services for those schemes and is consulting interested parties.

    HMRC has withdrawn valuation checks for income tax and PAYE that are not part of these recognized employee ownership schemes. Most people submitted acceptable valuations and therefore the valuation service was not seen as needed.